Saturday, March 23, 2013

Get Some Sunshine!


Have you noticed the flu hits in the dead of winter?  Colds are prevalent then also.  They are discovering that it is due to a lack of Vitamin D.  The best way to get Vitamin D is from the sun, imagine that!  They keep discovering what God made is the best for us.

One woman told me about her two grandmothers.  One never went in the sun, had beautiful skin, but always struggled with ill health.  Her other grandmother was always outside in the sun, had wrinkled skin, but was full of vitality and good health.

Florence Nightingale is known for saying that the patients who were on the southern side of the hospital building got well while those on the northern side did not.  When looking for a home, I always looked for a sunny one with a western or southern exposure.  I always keep all my window coverings up during the day to allow the sun to permeate my home.

Ken and I walk outside every day. We love being outside in the sunshine. When we walk on Saturdays along the beach, there are a ton of people walking, running, and riding bikes. Few people in San Diego are out of shape. Most people exercise a lot and eat fairly healthy. Children should play outside as much as possible.  It is conducive to staying healthy. 

When my mom had colitis and went to health resorts, they always had the sick people sit in the sun for an hour a day in the morning or afternoon. Whenever my children got sick, I would encourage them to go in the backyard and sit in the sun.  I never encouraged sunscreen. I just don't trust putting a ton of chemicals on your skin. Now, whenever I have a sore that doesn't heal, I use Black Salve and it works great!!

Here is another great article by Dr. Mercola and the benefits of sunshine and the importance of vitamin D in the fight against infection. Do what you can to stay healthy and leave the rest in God's hands.

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.
Psalm 119:105

Comments (8)

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This all makes so much sense. I am not an outdoors person and have always tried to limit my sun exposure, and yes I have very few wrinkles on my face. I live at 4300 elevation in the high desert of Nevada, so we are warned to be careful of the hot sun. When my vitamin D levels were tested for the first time last Fall my level was at 13 (normal range is 30-100 ~ I believe). I never knew the real health risk of having low levels of Vitamin D. I am up to 29 now and am working on getting it higher, and I have been allowing myself to feel the nice warmth of the sun on my skin almost daily.
1 reply · active 627 weeks ago
I have always loved the feel of the sun on my skin. I will often lay in the sun in the late afternoon.
This is a great post! I live in a neighborhood with a TON of little kids. All the other mothers are constantly putting SO much sunblock on their kids when we're out playing. I'm the only one who really doesn't use it much at all! I have always thought that the chemicals seemed more scary than getting a little sunkissed. With that said, I do use sunscreen if we are at the pool all day or something. I wonder if there is a natural sunscreen I could use? Anyway, thanks for the info on Vit D!
1 reply · active 627 weeks ago
You can find some without all the chemicals at health food stores. I usually tried keeping my children out of the noonday sun. That helped a lot.
The sun is wonderful and I always try and get some everyday. However Australia has the highest cases of skin cancer in the world and therefore it is important (in summer) to be careful about the amount of exposure especially for people like me with very fair skin that burns quickly. It is important to use sunscreens if outdoors for too long. Winter isn't anywhere near as bad and I can sit for far longer without any damage. Even if not a sunny day, fresh air is really good for us all and getting some (rather than being indoors all the time) is very wise.
1 reply · active 626 weeks ago
That is one thing I love about winter here. I can sit in the sun a lot longer!
This is great for those in warmer climates, but it is really hard to get sun exposure when it's freezing cold outside. Even if you go out everything but your face is covered, and you can't stay out too long. I definitely see benefits of sun, but there is also a risk with skin cancer. My grandpa was raised on a farm and worked long and hard outside growing up, never using sunscreen. He is 71 and has had over 100 skin cancer spots removed from in face, arms and hands.

Also, people like me, are just unable to get a lot of sun exposure. I have VERY fair skin, and I easily burn and never tan. I can burn from being out in the sun for a 20 minute walk. I think it's important that while limited exposure is good (I try to get at least 10 minutes a day (without sunscreen or umbrella) that there is A LOT of proven risk with too much sun exposure.

I've read several places that it doesn't take a lot of exposure (10 minutes a day of direct sun) to get the amount of vitamin D you need in a day). I take supplements in the winter time.
1 reply · active 626 weeks ago
I take vitamin d3 most every day and I have heard that ten minutes a day is all you need also. Dr. Marshall thinks 20 minutes a day is optimal but may be too long for fair skinned people.

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